Mentioning some of the university’s most notable innovations is testament to the culture of innovation at NC State. Sweet Acidophilus Milk. The world’s first synthetic aorta. The prototype for an artificial retina. The statistical models that make DNA forensics possible. Fireproof materials to protect soldiers and firefighters. The birthplace of industries and now businesses like Cree and SAS. Engineer Donald Bitzer even won an Emmy in 2002 for inventing the plasma display panel.

In the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, researchers have mapped the rice genome, helping to create high-yield, disease-resistant rice to feed the world. Groundbreaking work in the emerging field of nanotechnology, which enables the building of robots the size of molecules or new materials built atom by atom, is being conducted in the Colleges of Physical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering.

Heat-resistant fabrics used by the majority of our nation’s fire departments have been developed in NC State’s College of Textiles. And now researchers are actively reshaping the future of textiles with new products like nonwovens and medical textiles. In the College of Veterinary Medicine, faculty use one of the nation’s only pet MRI scanners to diagnose and treat animals.

NC State has received more than 350 patents for beneficial technologies developed by our world-class faculty. From 1997 to 2003, the university collected more than $21 million in royalties from technology licensed to outside companies -- money that is reinvested in new educational opportunities and new innovations. And through NC State’s Cooperative Extension Service field faculty in all 100 North Carolina counties along with visiting faculty and students from every college reach millions of people with research-based knowledge that strengthens the state’s economy, protects the environment and improves the quality of life for all North Carolinians.